Washington, D.C. - Congressman Chris Van Hollen today praised a decision by the Internal Revenue Service to suspend plans to close 68 Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs) in 29 states across the country. Earlier this year, the IRS announced plans to close the centers in order to save money and put it toward IRS enforcement. Van Hollen wrote to Treasury Secretary John Snow and IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson urging them to halt this action on the Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TAC), including the one in Wheaton, Maryland.
“While the IRS may need to bolster enforcement, it is wrong to do so at the expense of customer service. This will not only affect over 430 federal employees who will lose their current jobs serving taxpayers in our communities, but it will have a devastating impact on the millions of constituents who rely on tax guidance each year in order to comply with our tax laws.”
If the Wheaton TAC closed, several IRS employees would lose their positions and hundreds of taxpayers would be left without the personal tax help upon which they have come to rely.
Van Hollen continued, “The TAC is a vital resource for those citizens who require personal face-to-face tax assistance. Many taxpayers are reliant upon this TAC because they have complex issues, need help solving a tax problem, or are more comfortable talking with someone in person. IRS representatives help with inquiries or adjustments to tax accounts, payment plans for those who owe tax and cannot pay the full amount, questions about IRS letters and notices, and levies on wages or bank accounts.”
Although tax forms and information are available via online access and telephone assistance, the taxpayers who use the walk-in centers are often not comfortable with this technology, and many do not have access to such technology.